Los Refugios de la Guerra Civil

Out and About in Almeria - No. 2

On a very breezy and cold afternoon we went on a trip to The Refuge Tunnels from the Civil War, organised by one of our friends.

The municipal architect Guillermo Langle Rubio, designed the refuge tunnels that served to protect the inhabitants during air and naval raids in the period of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39).   The network of shelters meant the excavation of 4.5km of underground galleries, more than 9 metres deep with 67 manholes for access.    This system protected around 35,000 people out of a total of 50,000 inhabitants the city had at that time.   It took 18 months to complete.

The main passage (above) is two metres wide with two benches along each side for seating.   In the tunnels there was a food store (extra shows steps leading down and the food store) and a small hospital with 4 'beds' (extra shows the hospital still intact) - it was said on the tour that there were no deaths in the hospital, but some babies were born there.   Affluent residents could have their own shelters built in their properties but had to have a sign 'refugios' displayed so that others could use them to access the main tunnels. (extra shows the architects own private tunnel).

Some 52 bombings and 700 bombs were dropped on Almeria during this time.   When the war ended the Tunnels were sealed up and at their entrances Cabins (Newspaper Stands) were erected.

All in all it was a very interesting trip.   More on Almeria City itself at a later date